Joe Biden was not there to admire the magnificent splendour of the 850-year-old place of worship.
But Donald Trump was.
The role reversal neatly symbolised how power is draining from one man to the other. Biden, now a lame duck, appears to be in decline both physically and politically, fading from America's national stage and tarnishing his legacy with a pardon for his errant son. Trump, however, is already dominating the Washington agenda more than 40 days before he takes the oath of office.
He has grabbed attention with incendiary cabinet selections and policy pronouncements. He has begun flexing his muscles with world leaders. To many Americans, it feels like Trump is president again already.
"Biden's presidency is ending with a series of whimpers rather than a bang and it feels like he's shrinking into irrelevance as Trump is asserting himself," said Charlie Sykes, a conservative author and broadcaster.
"If you're a foreign leader, you may talk to Biden out of politeness but you're going to listen to Trump out of naked self-interest." Since defeating vice-president Kamala Harris in last month's election, Trump has set up a shadow presidency at Mar-a-Lago, his Florida base long dubbed his "winter White House".
Esta historia es de la edición December 13, 2024 de The Guardian Weekly.
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